By Mary Lou Dauray
As part of our ongoing series of eco-art and artists The Healing Power of ART & ARTISTS is pleased to introduce the creative and purposeful work of Alexandre Dang, a French visual eco-artist. Dang uses the energy of solar technology as the animating force in his work by bringing together, in a very appealing way, science, environmental concerns, and humanism. He has created joyful tableaux of hundreds of kinetically designed flowers called the “Dancing Solar Flowers.”
Dang, who currently resides in Brussels, Belgium, was educated as an engineer in the prestigious Ecole Polytechnique and Ecole National des Ponts and Chausses in Paris. After finishing school, he became convinced of the dire need to raise awareness about global climate concerns. He began to figure out how to combine his profound knowledge of technology with his artistic abilities by incorporating environmentally friendly technologies into his work. He developed an artistic moving creation, a flower, which uses the sun’s energy as the only source of power. His iconic flower illustrates the fact that one can combine successfully eco friendly technology and renewable energy.
The “Dancing Solar Flowers” have been featured in sites around the world, including the Belgian and European Pavilion of World Expo Shanghai 2010. They have joined museum collections including the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) of Taipei, and others too numerous to mention.
While Dang’s works have a universal appeal, he is hoping to attract the younger generation to the realities of using solar energy. To this end, Dang founded Solar Solidarity International as a non-profit organization which raises awareness of and support for solar photovoltaic electrification of schools in developing countries. He states “that although the sun provides 10,000 times more energy to the earth than humans need, more than 1.3 billion people still do not have access to electricity”.
Dang’s artistic and scientific background continues to evolve in the direction of new projects. Currently he is developing new machines, completely powered by solar energy, that make “solar paintings” and “solar drawings.” The first exhibition of such solar artwork recently occurred at the “Van Gogh Space” in Arles, France.
As we look to see what advances have been made in bringing awareness and solutions to the current global climate crises, one cannot help but see some hope with the measures adopted by the COP21 Paris Climate Change Summit, December 2015. As the president of the conference, Laurent Fabius said upon the signing of the agreement among 195 countries “Long Live the planet. Long live humanity. Long live life itself”. Alexandre Dang represents both an artist and scientist who has taken to heart this mantra through his eco-friendly creations.
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